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Parliament backs new rules to tackle financing of terrorism and organised crime

The European Parliament’s civil liberties, justice and home affairs committee today backed new rules that will make it easier to freeze and confiscate money or assets generated by criminal activity. The new measures will make it significantly simpler for national authorities to freeze assets used in organised crime in different EU member states. Negotiations will now begin with the European Council and Commission to finalise the new law.

S&D Group spokesperson for the proposals Emilian Pavel MEP said:

“These new rules are another important step in the fight against organised crime and terrorism. Freezing or confiscating illegally gained assets is one of the most effective means of combating organised crime. Having mutually recognised laws across the EU makes it easier for national authorities to tackle the issue across Europe. Organised crime is an EU-wide problem, it is clear that we need an effective EU-wide response.

“For our Group it was essential to ensure that these new tools could only be used for their intended purpose. We therefore managed to secure important amendments to protect fundamental rights and ensure strong procedural safeguards. It is now vital that these new proposals are implemented quickly and effectively by the member states.”